Urinary incontinence, or an inability to control urinary function, is a common problem affecting both men and women of all ages. Many feel embarrassed and do not dare to visit the doctor for help. This can lead to chronic incontinence. In the prior art, a common way of managing incontinence is to use absorbent articles such as diapers, sanitary napkins or pads, or even catheters. However, this only reduces the inconvenience for a wearer when an incontinence event occurs.
Common types of urinary incontinence include stress incontinence and urge incontinence. There is also a mixed type of incontinence including both stress incontinence and urge incontinence. Stress incontinence may be caused by loss of support of the urethra which is usually a consequence of damage to pelvic support structures as a result of childbirth, overweight or and some medications. Stress incontinence is typically characterized by a leakage of a relatively small volume of urine during activities which increase abdominal pressure such as coughing, sneezing and lifting, or rapid movements for example during sporting activities. The main treatment for stress incontinence is pelvic floor exercises. Other possibilities would be a surgery to tighten or support the bladder outlet or prescription of medications. Urge incontinence may on the other hand be caused by abnormal bladder contractions. This is sometimes also referred to as an “overactive” urine bladder. Urge incontinence is typically characterized by a leakage of a relatively large volume of urine in association with insufficient warning to get to the bathroom in time. Possible treatments for urge incontinence are pelvic floor exercises to retrain the bladder or prescription of medications to relax the bladder.
In the prior art, various systems relying on electrical sensors for detecting presence or urine in for example a diaper are known. Such prior art systems are however often merely able to detect that the diaper has become wet and signal the need to change the diaper to for example the wearer of the diaper or a caretaker. However, this only provides a limited help to people suffering from incontinence in that it mainly make it easier for the wearer or caretaker to determine that it may be time to change the diaper.